Rascals (episode)
Captain Picard, Ensign Ro, Guinan, and Keiko O'Brien are turned into children by a transporter accident, but retain their adult memories, resulting in different reactions from each. When rogue Ferengi hijack the Enterprise, the young crewmembers, along with Alexander, lead the revolt. Summary Coming back from a botanic expedition on planet Marlonia where Keiko O'Brien found a specimen of Draebidium calimus, the Fermi shuttle piloted by Ro Laren, Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Keiko and Guinan falls victim of an energy anomaly. The emergency transport back is difficult, and the crew is shocked by the return of a twelve year old Captain, bartender, botanist and Bajoran Ensign instead of their adult selves. Despite their new appearances, the crew is determined to continue their duties. However, they all find it hard to do so. The bridge crew is slightly intimidated to be under the command of a twelve year old captain. Picard attempts to make the change work, despite Dr. Crusher's suggestions, but soon realizes the wiser course of action. He hands over temporary command to Commander Riker, and retires to his quarters. Elsewhere on the ship, Guinan and Ro are trying to adjust to their new lifestyles. Ro just wants to return to duty, while Guinan is enjoying this experience. Ro complains constantly about how she hates being a child, and Guinan insists how fun childhood is. She finally persuades Ro to have a little childhood fun, which apparently allows Ro to relax and enjoy her times: They jump on a bed, each trying to jump higher than the other. Also, Keiko is having some trouble of her own. Being a child now, it is hard for her husband, Miles, to accept the fact that she resembles the image of a twelve year old girl. He says that he will adjust, but Keiko's daughter, Molly, does not respond the same. She does not recognize her mother when she comes to read her a bedtime story. Miles, not having the heart to break the news to Molly, offers to read the night's story. Meanwhile, Dr. Crusher thinks she has found a solution to the problem. After using a rapid growth mechanism, she discovers that the missing genetic codes that dictate the officer's appearance can be replaced in the transporter beam. Before she can attempt her plan, though, the ship is taken hostage by renegade Ferengi. Riker manages to lock out the computer's command functions. All adults, with the exception of Commander Riker, who is needed to remove the encryption of the computer, are transported to the surface for manual labor. However, the senior officers who were transformed into children are still aboard. By tricking the Ferengi guard outside the room he is held captive in, Picard manages to contact Riker, under the pretense that Riker is his father. He conveys the message to activate the LCARS net in the school room, giving them full access to the computer systems. They use the transporter to hold all the Ferengi captive in a mock detention cell made on the Transporter platform. They manage to regain control of the ship, and the Doctor is able to restore the officers to their former appearance using the Transporters. However, Ensign Ro wishes to remain a child a while longer, to enjoy the time of her life she missed the first time around. Memorable Quotes "Look at these fragments. They're... they're very nearly in perfect condition, and yet they're 700 years old." "So is my father." : - Picard and Guinan "You could return to the Academy. Take another degree. Brush up on your Latin." "And be Wesley Crusher's roommate?" : - Troi and Young Picard, discussing Picard's choices while waiting for his body to mature again "... I've spent my life looking forward ..." : - Young Picard, about his attitude toward life. "I want to see my father, I want to see him now, now! Now! NOW!" : - Picard as a young boy "I believe you're in my chair." : - Young Picard, as he points a phaser at the Ferengi in the ready room "Thanks, number one." (A Ferengi guard eyes Picard and Riker with suspicion) "Er ... he's my number one Dad!" (Picard and Riker embrace, grinning widely) : - Picard, as a young boy plotting with Riker to recapture the Enterprise "Okay, Morta. The Enterprise computer system is controlled by three primary main processor cores, cross-linked with redundant melacortz-ramistat 14-kiloquad interface modules. The core element is based on an FTL nanoprocessor with 25 bilateral kelilactirals. With 20 of those being slaved into the primary Heisenfram terminals. Now, you know what a bilateral kelilactiral is?" "Of course I do, human. I am not stupid!" "No. Of course not." : - Riker, spouting gibberish about the inner workings of the Enterprise computer to Morta "It's a child's computer. Computer, can you show me a picture of the inside of the ''Enterprise?" "''Yes, I can. The ''Enterprise is a Galaxy-class starship. Can you spell Enterprise? E-N-T-E-R-..." "''Delete audio!" : - Young Guinan, Elementary School Computer and Young Picard "Did you draw this one?" "I drew this one, this one, all of them!" : - Adult Guinan, Young Ro "Well, I should be doing something, instead of just standing around, waiting for them to find the cure!" "''You're right. Let's go play." : - Young Ro and Young Guinan "I haven't been young for a long time and I intend to enjoy every minute of it." : - Young Guinan "This is the first time these Jefferies tubes haven't seemed cramped." "How much farther do we have to go?" "About 50 meters. Don't tell me you're tired." "I'm not as young as I used to be." : - Young Ro and Young Guinan Background Information * This is the last episode of the series, chronologically, in which Miles O'Brien (Colm Meaney) appears. Soon after he transfers to Deep Space 9. He does appear in in the scenes set in 2364. * This episode also marks the final appearance of Rosalind Chao (Keiko O'Brien) and the only appearance of Hana Hatae (Molly O'Brien) on the series. Both make their first Star Trek: Deep Space Nine appearances in . * This episode is directed by Adam Nimoy, the son of Leonard Nimoy. He would also later direct . * There is a reference to this episode in the Deep Space Nine fourth season episode . In that episode, Odo cites the case of the Ferengi invaders as an example of a security breach aboard the Enterprise. * Ronald D. Moore commented: "When Michael bought the premise I thought he was completely insane: An Away Team rematerializes on the transporter as children — with adult minds! I tried again and again to bury this idea, which of course meant that I would get saddled with the inevitable rewrite when the script came in. I just thought it was a ludicrous idea and wanted nothing to do with it. That said, once I got the assignment, the professional writer in me had to commit to the material and do the best with it that I could, so I tried very hard to bring humor and humanity to the proceedings, chiefly through the Guinan/Ro story that I did end up liking in the end. I still cringe when I think of the episode (the Ferengi capture the Enterprise in a couple of broken down Birds of Prey???) but many people have told me how much they like it." * Young Picard is played by the same actor, David Tristan Birkin, that played René Picard (Captain Picard's nephew) in the episode . David was however ~15 1/2 when Rascals was filmed. Moreover, many would assume that David at that time would have looked older than 12. * The actress who played Young Guinan, Isis J. Jones would also play the young version of Whoopi Goldberg's (Adult Guinan) character in the movie Sister Act. * The Young Picard, when trying to clue Riker into activating the classroom computer, clearly asks him to activate the computer in "School room 8", while the computer display shown later in the classroom clearly displays "Classroom 7". * Two shots of the battle against the Birds of Prey were reused from . * Captain Kirk and crew had undergone a similar change (reverting to children) in the Star Trek: The Animated Series episode, . * Picard pretending to be Riker's son recalls the episode , in which Riker had a son named Jean-Luc in a holographic simulation of the Enterprise. Video and DVD releases *UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 67, . *As part of the TNG Season 6 DVD collection. Links and References Guest Stars *Colm Meaney as Miles O'Brien *Rosalind Chao as Keiko O'Brien *Michelle Forbes as Ro Laren *David Tristan Birkin as Picard, age 12 *Megan Parlen as Young Ro, age 12 *Caroline Junko King as Young Keiko, age 12 *Isis J. Jones as Guinan, age 12 *Mike Gomez as Lurin *Tracey Walter as Berik *Michael Snyder as Morta *Brian Bonsall as Alexander Rozhenko Special Guest Star *Whoopi Goldberg as Guinan Co-Stars *Morgan Nagler as Kid #1 *Hana Hatae as Molly *Majel Barrett Roddenberry as the and Fermi computer voice Uncredited Co-Stars *Lena Banks as an operations division ensign *Michael Braveheart as Ensign Martinez *Carl David Burks as Ensign Russell *Tracee Lee Cocco as Lieutenant j.g. Jae *Christie Haydon as a command division ensign *David B. Levinson as a renegade Ferengi *Michael Moorhead as a science division ensign *Keith Rayve as a command division crewman *Unknown performers as **Command division officer **Humuhumunukunukuapua'a (computer voice) **Renegade Ferengi Stunt double *Mark Riccardi as stunt double for Jonathan Frakes References accurentum; anesthizine; archeology; bioscan; ''B'rel''-class; Buranian; calcium; californium; class 4 probe; Crusher, Wesley; daiMon; Draebidium calimus; Draebidium froctus; elements; element Mx; ; Ferengi Salvage Code; Fermi; firomactal drive; Humuhumunukunukuapua'a; jamesium; jumper; keiyurium; kelilactiral; kiloquad; kryptonite; Dr. Langford; Ligos VII; Marlonia; mercury (element); molecular reversion field; plant biology; pillerium; quad; ribo-viroxic-nucleic structure; security access code; Sulvin IV; Taguan; Tarcassian razor beast; tin; type-6 shuttlecraft; Vendarite |next= }} de:Erwachsene Kinder es:Rascals it:Giovani eroi (episodio) ja:TNG:少年指揮官ジャン・リュック・ピカード nl:Rascals pl:Rascals Category:TNG episodes